Apple must pay $503m to VirnetX in long-running dispute
A Texas jury has told Apple to pay $502.8 million to VirnetX in a decade-long clash over network security patents.
On Friday, October 30, a jury at the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas held that a royalty rate of 84¢ would fairly and reasonably compensate VirnetX for Apple’s infringement.
IP licensing company VirnetX and Apple had stipulated that the total number of infringing units was 598,629,580, meaning the total amount of royalties added up to nearly $503 million.
In November last year, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit vacated a Texas jury’s calculation that Apple should pay VirnetX $503 million in damages, after finding that Apple didn’t infringe two of the four patents in the dispute.
VirnetX has accused Apple of infringing its network security patents through its FaceTime, VPN on Demand, and iMessage applications.
The case was remanded back to the Eastern District of Texas for a revised award or a new trial. While the retrial was scheduled to begin in mid-August, Apple pushed for a delay owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
VirtnetX dismissed the motion as “fearmongering”, but Judge Robert Schroeder granted a delay until October 26, when the trial was originally set to conclude, citing “good cause for a continuance”.
The jury deliberated for just over 90 minutes before returning its verdict, according to the court docket.
Another related suit, filed by VirnetX against Apple in 2010, was concluded earlier this year after the US Supreme Court refused to grant certiorari.
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